The Dragon's Amulet
by AryaStarks
Summary: Original Story, that gave me an idea when I read Hunger Games..Will never be finished..Main character lives in a apocalyptic world where everyone disappears by the touch of a monster. Where does everyone else go? I wrote this when I was eleven, and I haven't edited it. Sorry if it sucks.


A filthy blonde girl with wide gray eyes, stares back at me. She has pale skin, with a hint of a tan. Her clothes are in tatters, a light leather brown coat that seemed once expensive with its patches of clumped black fur on the collar, was now ruined with stains and rips all over.  
That girl was me.  
I stare at the reflection a little bit longer, before kneeling down, filling my half-gallon plastic bottle, with the lake water. I wasn't able to look anymore at my reflection, as the ripples start on the flat surfaced liquid. I put a drop of iodine, to disinfect the water, as I place the bottle back into my green duffel bag. Even if I have a water filter at home, I often got thirsty as I look for some game, something to satisfy my needs to eat. My needs for survival.  
I slung the bag over my shoulder, as I start hiking west of the lake. West of the lake, was a small log cabin, nestled deep in the pure green forest of a mountain. I travel uphill, puffing from the exercise. Even if this was my daily routine, I still wasn't able to get used to the burning in my legs, arms, anywhere in my body. I get an abundance of splinters each day, from climbing the trees, just to search if there's anything nearby. I let myself just blank out, as the rhythm of my feet crunching the dead leaves soothe me. Soothe me from the tremendous stress I experience each day. The overwhelming fear, that maybe I won't make it today.  
Before I know it, I was standing in front of my current home. A log cabin. It was decently sized, and was great shelter. It didn't have any broken windows, but it did need a few repairs on the roof, although I still have no idea on how to get up there, without a ladder. Nate and I stumbled upon this log cabin, when we were hiding out here. It was pure luck. The cabin has now plants growing wild around it, and many trees around it. There's nothing much outside of log cabin, except for the tree stump that I use to chop wood on, and the axe that's on top of the stump.  
"Shannon!" A young high-pitched boyish voice yells joyously from inside of the cabin. It's obvious that he missed me, even if I was gone for about seven hours or so. In my personal opinion, it wasn't that long.  
I open the door, glaring at my seven-year-old brother, with his tousled brown hair and sparkling green eyes that scream innocence. He looks nothing like me, and it stung a bit. He was the only family I have left. I want someone, someone who was related to me, to look at least a bit like me. He looks like the exact replica of our father..Which often brought painfully blissful memories to me.  
"Shhh," I hiss, always wary of the predators out there,"Do you want the Faers to catch us?"  
The Faers were these monsters, who came about a year or so ago. Whoever the dark blobs had physical contact with, would make the poor victim disappear. I was guessing that their fate was immediate death. After that, what was left of humanity split into two.  
The LoneHood ones, went cannibalistic, and often wore the teeth of their prey as accessories. I was a Daoir. Daoirs were people who just tried to live peacefully. There's really no identification for our group.  
I don't think there are any Daiors left, except for me and Nate.  
"Noooooo," Nate whispers back, "It's not like they're going to hear us here!"  
I sigh, immediately giving up on lecturing him, about being quiet.  
I placed the duffel bag on the carpeted floor, taking off my shoes, the supple leather that had molded onto my feet over time.  
"When are we going to move? I hate it here," Nate asks, peering at me, as if I knew all the answers. I was supposed to, since I was in charge and the older one. I was the boss.  
"Nate, truthfully, I don't know," I say glumly, putting my hair up in a ponytail with a elastic band. I only have a few left, and I hope they won't ever break. The log cabin was the nicest place we had ever took shelter to, and Nate still wasn't satisfied, and it always dissatisfies me when he doesn't even bother to say thank you, for even trying to support us. I walk into the kitchen, taking the duffel bag with me. I place the duffel bag onto the smooth wooden counter top. The kitchen has high ceilings, and has a eerie feeling to it. The thing that overall made the house seemingly haunted was the black and white photographs, and the old furniture that has a few red stains. Maybe it was ketchup. I zip open the duffel bag, taking out the water to give our German Shepherd who often was cooped up, upstairs, in the small bathroom. Defby prefers water from the lake than the water from the stone well that was settled right next to this house. Secretly, I also like the water from the lake, and often sipped a gulp or two before pouring a bowl for the dog. I decide to take it upstairs later on.  
"What are we having for dinner tonight, Shannon?" Nate asks eagerly, as he had followed me to the kitchen.  
I place a few edible plants on the table and a squirrel that I had managed to find, and shoot with my bow and arrows. I have quite a terrible aim, but I got lucky this time. My father took me to archery lessons a few times, before..well..the Faers. I start to clean the squirrel, finding it absolutely repulsive. I notice teeth marks on the squirrel, but I shrug it off, as I finish. I start chopping up the plants.  
"Stew with squirrel," I flatly say, as I stride over to the wooden cabinets, opening them. No wood. I groan in frustration, as I didn't feel like going outside again, with the rusty axe, having to chop it and do around thirty minutes of work.  
I peek out the window, as I button up my jacket. The zip had gotten jammed, weeks ago, so I resort into buttoning it up, to at least to keep me warm still. The log cabin was still cold, even if it was spring. It was only a few degrees warmer in here. It was dark out.  
And in the darkness, from experience there's always something lurking, something evil.

Dad had taught me how to survive out in the wild. He was afraid, that one day, there will be some type of zombies out to get us or something. He resorted into teaching Nate and I, how to identify edible plants, and how to balance the food groups.  
"I wish Dad was here," Nate quietly says. Somehow, this hurt my feelings. Haven't I done everything, to make sure Nate was happy? I was the one who provided food, found shelter, and managed to find shelter. And Defby! I had to hunt for a useless dog, that doesn't provide. The dog itself dead would have been more useful, since then we'd be able to survive on the meat itself for about a week. It seems that Nate was just trying to tell me, that I'll never be as useful as Dad.  
"I wish Dad was here too, Nate," I reply, feeling tears prick my eyes, although I tell myself to suck it up, as I pull my gray beanie hat onto my head.  
"How about, tomorrow, we'll hike to the nearest town, and have some fun?" I suggest, full-clothed. I know it's dangerous to go into town, but the one I had explored a few weeks ago, seemed as if there was nothing there. I still have the bow and arrows and the axe, so I'd be able to fend off nearly anything.  
"Really?!" Nate filled with excitement hugs my waist, and I found myself smiling.  
"Yes, really," I say, as I twisted the doorknob open, peeking out the door. Nothing was lurking out there, to my relief.  
"Well we only have a stick," Nate let go of me, his face etched with happiness.  
"Play with Defby or something, I'll be back in about thirty or so minutes. Don't go outside," I tell him, as I emerge outside of the house. I kneel down, and tie my boots.  
"And don't forget to give her the water. I think it's purified by now," I tell him, taking a black backpack that was his, and was often placed outside so I would be able to put the wood in there and the axe, before I left. I walk through the endless supply of trees, which was dotted with green. Even if it was close to summer, it was still cold up here in the mountain.  
I was about a half a mile or so away from the house, a little bit of firewood filled up in Nate's pack, until I heard a scream. It was a child's scream, and unmistakably Nate's. There was no one else capable of making such a scream, as I felt myself paling. I threw the bag off me, as I start running towards the house, not able to help myself even if this may have been a trap of the LoneHood ones or that the Faers had finally found us.  
"Shannon!" Nate screams again, as I was in view with the house again.  
"Nate!" I shout back, as I saw Nate outside the house with two dark figures surrounding him.  
That was the last time I said his name before he disappears into thin air.  
One of the two Faers dies before it had been able to do anything, as I threw my axe at it.  
Blind with fear, I can't help but feel relentless anger. My only friend. My family. My companion was gone. I may as well be gone, weaponless. I start to turn the other way, running the opposite direction from the Faer. I wasn't fast enough, as I look over my shoulder, seeing it was about to touch my shoulder. It did.  
And all started turning black, as I felt a tear streak down my cheek. I'm dead now, was my last thought, before I gave into the darkness.

Chapter 2  
"She looks like nothing," I hear a voice say.  
"That's how you looked when you first came here!" A feminine voice argues back.  
I let me eyes stay shut, shocked that I was still alive. Was I in a coma? Were the Faers all just part of my imagination? Or is this the afterlife?  
"She's awake!" A third voice hisses to the others.  
"How do you know, Freak-o?" The first voice that I had heard since I was awake, snap.  
"Her breathing changed, stupid," It was clear the two things, whatever they were, maybe people, strongly dislike each other.  
Since they know I'm awkae, I decide to just open my eyes. I estimate about ten faces staring at me. They were people. Like me. Definitely the afterlife. But...where was Dad?  
"Am I dead?" I ask bluntly, completely bewildered by this.  
"No. You are in the Choosing Room. The Choosing Room is where the leaders of each faction, decide if they want to invite you, or decide to make you factionless and then you're..well...screwed," A small dark-skinned girl with chocolate-brown eyes, explains to me.  
"Where are the Faers?" I feel stupid asking all these questions, but I need to know if this was just a figment of my imagination or not.  
"Them? They do whatever they want. We're just their entertainment," the girl says.  
I need to remember something, but I just can't remember it. It was nagging me. I focus on the white walls. There was no furniture. Just people standing there, judging me. I felt as if I were naked.  
"Stop asking questions, it's time for us to choose," the male who first was talking snaps at me, and I blink in surprise.  
Factions? Entertainment? What was going on?  
A chorus of murmurs filled the room.  
No one wants me, even if I had no idea what was going on. No one wants a skinny pale girl, who looks like she's homeless.  
"I'll have her," The dark skin girl says. She pities me. Well, she's also skinny. And short, I seethe in my mind.  
"Have a fun time losing, stranger," The male tells me, and everyone else snickers.  
This was the Choosing? All they did was just judge me on how I look? I knew a whole lot more than my looks said about me, I thought feeling hurt. I know I was ugly, but...  
"My name's Lily, and you are now decreed to be part of the Dragon Faction, where the fire never ends," She says, smiling warmly at me, as I try to stand up. She offers me her hand, and I took it with my dirty gray gloves, managing to finally stand up. We walk out into a dull-colored hallway, which has endless doors. I look around in fascination, wondering when the hallway will finally end, until I realize the girl was looking at me, waiting for me to tell her my name.  
"I'm Shannon," I whisper, still wondering what was nagging my mind. It was as if I forgot something important...  
"Well Shannon, prepare for the torture that's bound to come," Lily tells me, her eyes showing no sympathy, as she shoves me into a burgundy-colored room.  
And all I can think was, I had just done the same thing to Lily. I underestimated her, like the leaders did to me, in the Choosing Room.  
What a hypocrite I was.

Chapter 3  
Three pairs of glowering yellow eyes fix onto me, as I turn around slowly, only able to make that out. My eyes try to adjust to the sudden darkness, as I realize, they were starting to advance towards me. A few more steps, and they'll be able to do whatever they want...The three dark looming humans gave off a sense of fear, as I step back into the wall. I shut my eyes, preparing for a sudden burst of violence.  
Nothing came. I open my eyes. They just stood there before me, with slumped shoulders. I was able to make out their faces, which were actually scales...Marble-colored scales, that shocks me. How...is that possible?  
"Hello," A gravelly voice says. I wasn't sure which one of them spoke up.  
"Hi," I say, in a small voice.  
"I'm assuming you're in the Dragon faction," says the other one, with a more high-pitched voice.  
I nod, as I gnaw on my lip, drawing blood.  
A ghostly white-scaled hand reaches for my forehead. I immediately suck in a breath, as I feel the iciness of it. It feels as if it was a dead hand. No circulation of blood.  
"Don't worry future _helten_..I'm not your enemy," The voice rasps out.  
I blink, unable to understand what was helten...maybe a type of food, I wonder.  
"I see your future. Your thoughts. Everything," The one in the middle who was touching my forehead still, says.  
I still stay quiet, as I stare into the odd eyes. The other two...things..keep quiet, respecting their 'leader'.  
"You're wondering what's the Dragon Faction...the Dragon Faction..it's considered the lowest of all the factions. There are in total thirteen factions, for each race of what you humans call 'fairytale characters' I'm assuming. I'll take too much time by just thinking up of what you call them, but each faction once in a while is brought up another one, and placed anywhere. An island, a forest, whichever the audience votes for. You are given instructions on what you are supposed to fight for, what to find. You are also on TV, and your audience expects some drama and bloodshed. In your free time..you'll be a 'gladiator'," It explains to me.  
"Any advice for me?" I croak out, feeling overwhelmed with this this information.  
"Shine, but don't stand out," It whispers to me, before taking away its hand. I look down as the other one, who was slightly shorter, plunges a type of needle into my side. I feel it burning through my veins, as I faint, tears prickling the corners of my eyes.

I wake up, trying to adjust to the brightness. It was just a bad dream, I tell myself, as I hear a crowd cheer. Wait...what? The blurry colors become more focused, as I blink rapidly. I was in a coliseum, in the same arena filled with other confused people like me. All of us were strategically placed in a circle, distanced, but quick to get to each other. I stand up, dusting myself off, as I try to take it all in. I notice that my clothes were replaced with a purple shirt with a interesting reptile-like design on my shirt, loose black pants, and flexible combat boots. Good for running, I note.  
"Welcome, welcome, and I hope you certainly liked your beauty sleep, because this will be your last time enjoying your sweet dreams," A obnoxious voice echos, and more..strange colorful creatures start cheering. These weren't cheering people. These were the "fairytale characters". Some had wings, others look like they were animals. My stomach lurches at the thought, if any of these creatures were cannibalistic.  
"Four of you will die today, and the whole rotten lot of you will be immediately welcomed into your factions. Your initiation begins now," The male voice announces, before a loud gong rings out.  
My feet shuffle for a moment, confused at the direction my brain wants to take and then I back away, and the "fairytale characters" with the same reptile-creature on their clothing, booed at me. I flinch as this happens, as fighting erupts between the most brutish people. I look down at my feet, as a knife materializes in front of me. A beautiful blonde was running towards me, swinging a bloody axe, and I immediately picked it up, but she never got to swing the red-colored weapon at me. A spear erupts out of her stomach, as it was thrown into her back. She falls down, her face paling, her life coming to a end. Two dead already, as I notice another body on the sandy ground already. I grip the handle of my knife, as a boy who had no weapon of any kind throws himself at me. I sidestep this attack, fear making the adrenaline pump into my veins. The blue sky darkens slightly, as I don't hear the cheering of these things anymore. Everything fades away, as I focus for my survival.  
He looks puzzled on where I went, but his brown eyes light up as he looks to his left. His grubby hands reach for my throat, but I plunge the knife into his chest, out of instinct. I realize..this wasn't any different than killing a wild animal...  
"Congraaaaatulations!" The same voice booms out, the same obnoxious one.  
I didn't even bother listening, as I stare at the limp body.  
I'm a killer. And I'm being prepared for slaughter.

Chapter 4  
I look up, the wind blowing in my face. The stench of blood soon invades my nostrils, and I stifle a gag, as I continue to stare at the blue sky, not moving at all. I hear a click, as I exaime two sets of circular metals being that are now on my wrists. I wonder what they do, as the metal has the same reptile-like symbol. I study it intently, realizing that it's supposed to be a dragon.  
My faction.  
I hear a feminine scream, as a girl with auburn hair seems to try to run away, but she immediately seems to be dragged by her arms, well by the metal cuffs, back to a...thing that looks a lot like a human with wings. The thing has beautiful swirling colorful swirly tattoos as its skin is a magnificent smooth, although a silver luminous color was obviously its skin tone. It has long, beautiful, black hair that flows like the ocean. I immediately become jealous of the beauty of her hair.  
I then scold myself for being so shallow, as I watch the idiotic girl. Where was she able to run? Nowhere.  
Immediately, I felt a sudden push on my back, and with confusion, I try to continue to watch the girl, until I realize I'm supposed to walk towards the gate that was in the process of being lifted up. I tore my eyes away from the girl, as I slowly walk towards it, entering the dark dungeon. It's full of sick people who try and grab me, but whenever they get too close, a zap of blue throws them against the wall. Then they try and yell, but all I hear is whispers in a odd, but fascinating, language. I will myself not to cry, as I keep seeing the dead body of the boy, staring at me lifelessly, in my head.  
I was led to a place that had a lot of doors, with different colors and made of different materials. I look at the door I was led to, that had the reptile-symbol on it. The door was scarlet, and the doorknob seems to be made of coal, but as I place my hand onto it, it feels suspiciously a lot like a metal that I'm unable to identify. I jerk the door open, seeing about twenty people estimate.  
I see scarlet curtains hanging covering up, possibly windows, as people stop whatever they were doing, and stare at me.  
I feel myself blush, despite the situation I was, I still am human and feel embarrassed by times like these.  
A boy with dull brown hair stands up, walking over to me, towering.  
I look up, as he seems to be studying me. A girl with blonde short hair, and pretty skin seems to hesitantly follow him, and I think I've seen her before.  
"Who are you?" He says, in a gruff tone.  
I think momentarily. I can recreate myself. With all the information I managed to gather today, I'm going to be in a new faction, fighting for my life.  
"Nix," I say, the strange name leaving my tongue.  
"I'm Dylan," He says, and then looks over at the beautiful girl.  
"She's Shan," He huskily introduces her, and I twitch, feeling uncomfortable.  
It looks like I possibly might find an alliance here, I think, as I meet the gaze of the blue-eyed Shan, who also seems to be  
weighing her options, judging if I'm good enough.  
She remembers me, and I feel a shiver trail down my spine, and she hates me.  
I'm wrong.  
I won't be able to make an alliance.  
I'm going to die immediately, with her here.

_It was just a day after the Faers came.__  
Dad, Nate, Defby, and I were on the run.__  
We just made it out of town, where most of the action was going on. Dad told me if anything happened, I was to go find a mountain, any type with many trees to keep cover, and try and set up camp. I wiped my face, that was covered in snot and tears, and noticed something shriveled and white on my coat's sleeve. It was the pimple cream that I never managed to wash off my face. He handed me a belt and a gun that was at the moment covered in a case, so I wouldn't accidently shoot myself.__  
"If these monsters..Faers...come near you...shoot them with this. You know how to use a gun. I'll give you the rest of the weapons later. You took lessons in archery, and I absolutely know that you can use a switchblade,Shan-shan," He told me grimly, his brown hair sticking up in different directions, as I took the gun, and carefully buckled the belt onto my waist. I placed the gun onto my hip, clipping it on the belt. He handed me another belt, that was filled with ammo, and I gratefully accepted it, tying it over the belt that contained the gun.__  
"Okay Dad," I whispered, acknowledging him that I understood.__  
"Go scout the area, I need to sort everything into the backpacks. The car won't be good for anything, anymore," He told me, as Nate was asleep with Defby guarding him, inside the car, on top of the black leather seats.__  
I nodded to him, as I cautiously gazed at the forest, the beautiful green inviting me in. I glanced at the paved road, and gave a final wave to Dad, before I turned around and walked into the forest. I felt as if every Faer on Earth could hear me, as I often clumsily tripped on a stick, or made loud crunching noises as I stepped on dead leaves.__  
I saw a girl...running..her hair was long and greasy. It seemed the invasion had already taken a toll on her, as her clothes were already dirty, and she had bags under her eyes...yet she was so beautiful.__  
She saw me, and mouthed help, as a Faer came after her, the dark shape seemed to take its time, as it glided after her.__  
I hid behind a pine tree, trembling with panic, as I fumbled with the black straps. I tugged on it, before finally I was able to take out the silver Magnum gn. The girl tripped on a tree root, as I peeked at her, my hands shaking as I tried to load the gun.__  
The blonde haired beauty started screaming, as she realized it was her end. Tears squeezed into my eyes, as the frustration and pressure came to me, as I finally loaded four silver bullets, and I clicked the trigger, so I'd be able to finally shoot now.__  
It was too late, as the last thing she saw was me, her tear streaked face burning daggers at me, as Faer made contact with the girl.__  
She disappeared, as I shot the Faer, the thing giving a inhuman scream. I shot it the second time, and it made no more sound._

THIS IS STILL CHAPTER 4: This is the lamest one I've ever written..so sorry..  
Shan puts on a smile, and I'm not sure if it's fake or not, as she bouncily walks over to me. Everyone starts chatting again, as some tend to their wounds, or some are trying to get some extra shuteye.  
"Hi, Nix!" She says, in a cheerful voice.  
Dylan put his arm around her, and I have a feeling that I shouldn't get on this boy's bad side. He was fairly muscled, and I suck in a breath, hyperventilating.  
"Hello," I mutter, fear clutching my heart. I only remember her...the rest of the memory was blurry, as if someone was tweaking it, making sure that I won't know the rest of the people in the flashback, just Shan. I feel as if I forgot something important, but I choose to ignore it, as I study the coal-colored floors.  
"Most of the people chosen for our faction die at initiation immediately," Dylan finally speaks out, and I look up, only to be polite. His nose was a bit too large for my liking, but I chose to ignore it, as looks shouldn't matter in a chance to find a friend, that can probably keep an eye out for me...  
"I guess I'm not most people," I say, not really knowing how I was supposed to reply to his comment.  
Shan chuckles, before resuming her straight face.  
"It looks like it," Dylan says, before leading Shan away from me.  
I stand there, not knowing if I should continue exploring, by exiting this room. People were emerging in and out of a wide doorway.  
Someone inserts something into my ear...an earpiece, I assume, from the voices coming out of it.  
"Zero-Four-Eight is to be checked in," says a male voice.  
"Faction Dwarf is trying to hack into our system. One-ten-fourteen, get your [CENSORED] in here!" Says another.  
"Private Chat Request. Name: Lucille. Decline or Accept?" says a monotone voice.  
I look around, and see that it's my earpiece talking to me.  
"I accept," I say, wondering where the microphone was. Then I think of the time I was blacked out, and I queasily stare at the scarlet curtains.  
"Hello! I'm Lucille, one of your fellow members of the Dragon Faction. I'm your new partner," says a aggressive voice, and I flinch out of instinct.  
"I'm Nix..." I say lamely, as I tore my gaze away from the curtains. This room was big, as I look at the scarlet couches, high ceilings. It was grand.  
"I assume you are in the Hangout? It's for the people who want to be killed. Anyways, go into the main corridor, and you'll find me in your new room. Oh, and I'm your roommate," She informs me, as I enter the corridor, and in a scarlet flash, I'm teleported into my new room. I blink, feeling slightly dazed and sick.  
"When you enter the corridor, you are flashed to your room," She says, as I gape at the walls. The walls, of course, were scarlet, but out of the small "coal" rocks/metal there is a design of a dragon shooting fire out of its mouth. The red and orange fire was probably some type of rare gem..or plastic.  
"Cool, right? I managed to get the reward a few tasks ago, and this was included. I got to redecorate the room," Lucille with her aggressive voice, seems surprisingly friendly. I noticed that the earpiece was quiet, and felt partially relieved by this.  
"I think...it's interesting," I bring myself to say, as I finally get a good look at her. She's dressed in goggles, a long brown coat, boots that reach up to her knees. Her black T-shirt was baggy, but had many grease stains and dirt. She's pretty, I decide, as I look at her topaz eyes, black hair, and mocha-colored skin.  
"I'm your partner in the next few tasks. We'll be having to work together, share the rewards, share our boyfriends-" she answers my unspoken questions.  
"Boyfriends?" I ask, alarmed by this.  
"Training is getting to me. I mean our weapons, although you should treat your weapon as your boyfriend. Make sure it's clean, charged, and looking cool," she tells me, and I just nod along.  
I continue to steal glances away from her face, as I want to explore..this...house..I mean room. This room had two beds, and all these... glittery trinkets set out on a mahogany table..  
"Are you hungry?" She asks me, tying her silky hair into a messy bun.  
I nod, touching my greasy hair, feeling ashamed of my terrible hygiene.  
"I'll go cook something, while you..do your thing," Lucille says, wrinkling her nose, as she gently pushed me in front of a door, and I hear her footsteps fading away into another room, which was most likely the kitchen. With fatigue, I open the door open, and find a shower, jacuzzi, toilet, and a sink..It was like heaven, as I finally feel tears dripping down my face.  
This felt a bit like home, as I push a certain button on this remote, that makes the shower activate.  
As I stand there, crying silently, I realize, that I actually liked being prepared for my slaughter.  
These luxuries felt like heaven, momentarily.


End file.
